Page 61 of An Enigma for the Lycan Crown Prince

“Wow,” I mutter. “That’s impressive.”

“It really is,” he admits.

“Are you going to meet him?” I ask.

“Yes, I have to,” he says. “Dad picked him, and Samuel already gave his okay. I can’t go against the council. I wish I had a real choice, but as it is, I need to make the best of it.”

“Please tell me you are taking Vincent along,” I say.

“Of course, that’s the first thing I told Samuel. He is going to set up a meeting. Knowing Samuel, it will be sooner rather than later.” He sighs. “Isn’t it weird how powerless we are sometimes? They keep emphasizing our bloodline, the prophecy, and our powers, yet they still try to play us like figures on a chessboard.”

“We’ll change it,” I say with conviction. “We will make sure to become good leaders and change the world.”

Elden smiles at me before he pulls me into a kiss. “That’s what I love so much about you, your unshakable optimism.”

He always says that, and I am happy he appreciates this about me.

“Thank you for not calling it naivety,” I say, pecking his nose.

“I don’t think you are naïve,” he says. “In fact, I find you highly inspirational.”

“So,” I beam, deciding to take that as my cue. “Can your highly inspirational mate motivate you to do a birthday party?”

He groans. “Do I have to?”

“Just something small,” I reassure him. “I will organize it for you!”

“You know I can’t say no to you,” he mutters.

I wrap my arms around him, plastering him with kisses until he laughs.

nineteen

Calvin

*ELDEN*

Samuel truly worked his magic, as expected, and has set up a meeting between Calvin, Vincent and me for the weekend, already. Vincent is driving the both of us. On Samuel and Dad’s insistence, he isn’t using his motorbike that often anymore, and instead drives the car they bought for him. Dad is so much about prestige and looks that he preferred spending thousands of dollars over Vincent using his motorbike.

“Vince,” I say. “I need to talk to you about something.”

“Sounds official,” he says while parking the car.

“It is,” I admit. “Probably the first help I need from you as my beta.”

“Hit me with it; I’m eager to help.”

“I feel like someone is searching through my room,” I explain. “The first time I had the feeling was when I went to that party, on the day we first met. And then again, last week when we met Trixie, and were at Flora’s place for most of the evening. It’s not awfully obvious, and there are no weird scents anywhere, but I like to have my stuff in certain places, and it’s not always where I think I placed it.” I pause. “It could be the maids, I guess.”

“If there is even the tiniest intuition that someone is going through your things, then it’s worth researching it,” Vincent says promptly. Relief fills me with how seriously he takes my words, and how he doesn’t try to convince me that it’s all just in my head. He was truly the perfect choice as my beta. “I will think of something,” he says. “One of the maids is a good friend. If you want, I can ask her to keep an eye on who is entering and leaving your room.”

“We could at least try,” I say. “Well then, let’s go.”

“Wouldn’t want to keep the new guy waiting,” Vince grins.

“Let’s hope this Calvin is a good one, because we’ll be stuck with him for a while.”

“But you have a choice.”